Method of washing shoes in drum type washing machine

ABSTRACT

A method of washing shoes in a drum type washing machine includes a washing step of washing the shoes by supplying washing water to a tub and rotating a drum connected with a motor; a rinsing step of rinsing the shoes after the completion of the washing step; and a spin-drying step of spin-drying the shoes by rotating the drum alternately in left and right directions.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims priority to Korean patent application number 10-2007-0139529, filed on Dec. 27, 2007, and Korean patent application number 10-2008-0130996, filed on Dec. 22, 2008, which is incorporated by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a method of washing shoes in a drum type washing machine, and more particularly, to a method of washing shoes in a drum type washing machine which is capable of efficiently washing the shoes in consideration of material and weight of the shoes.

In general, a washing machine is classified into a pulsator type washing machine, an agitator type washing machine and a drum type washing machine. In these washing machines, the drum type washing machine, which is provided with a cylindrical drum installed therein and filled with water, washes laundries using friction between the laundries and the drum and potential energy of the laundries generated when the laundries are lifted up along an inner surface of the drum and then dropped from a high position while the drum is rotated in forward and rearward directions in turn by several times and thus has little damage of the laundries, no entanglement of the laundries and an effect as if beating or rubbing the laundries.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view illustrating a conventional drum type washing machine.

As shown, the drum type washing machine includes a drum 11 for putting laundries 14 thereinto and a tub 10 provided outside the drum to house the drum.

Washing water is filled in the tub 10 by a predetermined level 15.

Therefore, when the drum 11 is rotated, the laundries submerged in the washing water is moved up along the inside surface of the drum 11 and then dropped by gravity at the high position, thereby washing the laundries.

Also, a heater 13 for heating the washing water is provided at a lower part of the drum 11 to give a boiling wash effect.

Washing method of the drum type washing machine configured as above described will be described.

First, when the drum type washing machine is turned on after opening the door thereof and putting laundries into the drum, a weight of the laundries 14 putted into the drum 11 is detected and the washing water is supplied to the tub 10 by a level set according to the weight.

During the washing water is supplied, the drum 11 is rotated alternately in left and right directions so that the laundries can absorb the washing water sufficiently.

After that, when the washing water is filled in the tub 10 to the set level and the water supply is thus completed, a motor (not shown) is driven to rotate the drum 11. Accordingly, the laundries 14 are repeatedly subject to upward movement and drop by a lifter 12 in the drum 11 and main washing process is carried out.

After the main washing process is completed, a rinsing process in which the washing water contaminated during the main washing process is discharged and supply of clean water and rinsing the laundries 14 are then repeated several times is carried out. After the rinsing process is completed, a spin-dry process in which the drum 11 is rotated in a high speed to remove the water absorbed in the laundries 14 with a centrifugal force is carried out.

Next, a dry process in which the spin-dried laundries 14 are dried again in high temperature to remove the water remained in the spin-dried laundries 14 is carried out.

The preceding process is a general washing process of a drum type washing machine.

In recent, various clothes except for furs and leather, or shoes are washed in a home using this drum type washing machine.

The proceeding discussion is only for the purpose of providing a technical background of the art and does not mean a prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In order to wash shoes in a conventional drum type washing machine, a general washing process is applied. But, such application of the general washing process to the shoes causes the following problems.

First, since the shoes generate an unbalance problem that the shoes are not uniformly dispersed on the inner wall due to their self weights although the laundries should be subject to the spin-dry with being uniformly dispersed on and stuck to the inside wall of the drum, the spin-dry for the shoes is not properly carried out and the shoes generate large noises as well as extreme vibrations of the washing machine itself by being bumped against the inner wall of the drum.

Second, since rubber or the material for the shoes is deformed upon the high temperature dry, the shape of the shoes may be deformed or an adhered portion of the shoes may be separated.

Third, when the drum is rotated in the left and right directions to aid the absorption of the washing water in the laundries upon the water supply, the shoes are bumped against the inner wall of the drum and thus generate noises.

Embodiments of the present invention are directed to a method of washing shoes in a drum type washing machine which is capable of efficiently washing the shoes in consideration of material and weight of the shoes, thereby reducing vibration and noises of the washing machine upon wishing and preventing deformation of the shoes.

In one embodiment, a method of washing shoes in a drum type washing machine includes: a washing step of washing the shoes by supplying washing water to a tub and rotating a drum connected with a motor; a rinsing step of rinsing the shoes after the completion of the washing step; and a spin-drying step of spin-drying the shoes by rotating the drum alternately in left and right directions after the completion of the rinsing step.

In the washing step, the washing water is supplying a low level.

The washing step includes a soaking step of soaking dirt of the shoes for a predetermined time by heating the washing water to a predetermined temperature.

In the washing step, the motor is rotated at 30 to 55 RPM.

The rinsing step includes a interim spin-drying step of spin-drying the shoes by rotating the drum alternately in the left and right directions.

In the spin-drying step, the spin-dry is continued for 3 to 15 minutes.

In the spin-drying step, the drum is rotated for a predetermined time in the left and right directions, respectively, with stop period between the rotations.

In the spin-drying step, the motor is rotated at 40 to 45 RPM.

The spin-drying step includes a high speed spin-drying step of spin-drying the shoes by rotating the motor at a high RPM.

The method may further include a cleaning step of cleaning the tub after the completion of the spin-drying step.

The cleaning step is performed when selected within a predetermined time after the completion of the spin-drying step.

The method may further include a drying step of drying the shoes at a low temperature after the completion of the spin-drying step.

In the drying step, the heater is turned on at 30 to 40° C. and turned off at 45 to 55° C.

The drying step is continued for 30±5 minutes.

In the drying step, the drum is rotated for predetermined time in the left and right directions, respectively, with stop period between the rotations.

According to the present invention, it is possible to efficiently wash the shoes in consideration of material and weight of the shoes, thereby reducing vibration and noises of the washing machine upon wishing and preventing deformation of the shoes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic view illustrating a conventional drum type washing machine.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a method of washing shoes in a drum type washing machine in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the drawings are not to precise scale and may be exaggerated in thickness of lines or size of components for the purpose of convenience and clarity only. Furthermore, terms used herein are defined in consideration of functions in the present invention and can be changed according to the custom or intention of users or operators. Thus, definition of such terms should be determined according to overall disclosures set forth herein.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a method of washing shoes in a drum type washing machine in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

In a general washing process, a weight of laundries putted into the drum is measured to determine a water level to be supplied according to the detected weight of the laundries, and clean water is supplied to the tub which houses the drum by the determined water level.

However, in the present invention, the process of measuring the weight of the laundries is omitted and the water is supplied by a predetermined water level (S10).

Herein, the predetermined water level is the same as a water level when the measured weight of the laundries is below 4 Kg. That is to say, the water is supplied to the tub by such a level that the shoes are slightly dipped therein. At this time, during the water is supplied, the motor is stopped to omit rotation of the drum in the left and right directions, thereby preventing impact noises caused by bumping of the shoes against an inner wall of the drum.

After the water is supplied to the tub by the predetermined level, the motor is driven at 30 to 55 RPM to rotate the drum, thereby performing a main washing process (S12).

Before the main washing process (S12) is performed, a soaking process, in which the supplied water is heated to soak and remove dirt smudged on surfaces of the shoes for a predetermined time, may be performed.

When performing the soaking process, the washing water is preferably heated to a temperature of 40±5° C. When the washing water is heated to a high temperature, an adhered portion of the shoes may be weakened or a shape of the shoes may be deformed.

After the main washing process (S12) is performed as described above, a rinsing process is performed.

The rinsing process includes a draining (S14) for draining the washing water used and contaminated in the main washing process (S12) to the outside, an interim spin-dry (S16) for removing water absorbed in the shoes, a water supply (S18) for supplying clean water again to the tub and a rinsing (S20) for rinsing the shoes with the supplied clean water.

At this time, the interim spin-dry (S16) for removing water absorbed in the shoes may be optionally omitted.

The interim spin-dry (S16) is characterized by an alternate spin-dry, in which the motor is not rotated at 700 to 750 RPM to rotate the drum like the general washing process but rotated at 40 to 45 RPM alternately in the left and right directions to simply shake off the water on the shoes.

In such the alternate spin-dry, the rotation of the motor is continued for 10 seconds in the left and right directions, respectively, with 10 seconds of stop period between the rotations.

When clean water is supplied again after the interim spin-dry (S16) is completed as described above, the motor is stopped so as not to rotate the drum.

Overall rinsing process is preferably performed two or three times (S22).

After the rinsing process is completed, the water used in the last rinsing process (S20) is drained to the outside (S24) and a main spin-dry (S26) is performed.

In the main spin-dry (S26), an alternate spin-dry, in which the motor is rotated for 10 seconds in the left and right directions, respectively, with 10 seconds of stop period between the rotations, is performed like the interim spin-dry performed in the rinsing process.

As described above, by rotating the motor in the left and right directions at a low RPM, it is possible to minimize the problems, generated upon the conventional high RPM rotation, that the shoes generate large noises or extreme vibrations of the washing machine by being bumped against the inner wall of the drum.

The spin-dry in the main spin-dry (S26) is continued for 3 to 15 minutes and an effect of shaking out the water absorbed in the shoes is obtained by the drum alternately rotated in the left and right directions (S28).

Meanwhile, in addition to the alternate spin-dry, an additional spin-dry may be performed by rotating the motor at a high speed of 400±50 RPM.

In a drum type washing machine having additional dry function, a low temperature dry (S30) may be additionally performed after the main spin-dry (S26).

In the low temperature dry, the shoes are dried not at a high temperature like when drying general clothes but at a relatively low temperature of 40±5° C.

At this time, the heater repeats turned on at 30 to 40° C. for 2 to 10 seconds and turned off at 45 to 55° C. for 30 to 60 seconds, thereby maintaining the temperature of 40±5° C.

When the shoes are dried at a high temperature in the low temperature dry (S30), an adhered portion of the shoes may be weakened or a shape of the shoes may be deformed.

At this time, in a case of the shoes of which side faces is stitched, the dry temperature can be set to be slightly higher.

This low temperature dry (S30) is continued for 30±5 minutes and the motor is rotated alternately and intermittently in the left and right directions. That is to say, the motor is rotated for 2 seconds in the left and right directions respectively and 30 seconds of long stop period is present between the rotations. At this time, the motor is rotated at 30 to 45 RPM.

Finally, the shoes warmed up during the low temperature dry (S30) is cooled for 5 minutes (S32). At this time, a wrinkle prevention process included in a general dry process is omitted.

After the shoes washing is finished as described above, a tub cleaning process (S36) for cleaning the tub of the washing machine is performed since soil may acts as a contaminant when the soil smudged on the shoes is fall out and remained in the tub.

In the tub cleaning process (S36), rinsing and spin-dry are respectively performed one time. This tub cleaning process (S36) may be performed when a user selects tub cleaning within a predetermined time, for example, 3 to 5 minutes (S34).

In a case of a drum type washing machine with no dry function, the tub cleaning is performed after the main spin-dry (S26) is completed (S28).

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings, it should be understood that these embodiments are provided for illustrative purpose and that various equivalent modifications and alterations will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of this invention. Therefore, the scope and sprit of the invention is limited only by the claims set forth herein as follows. 

1. A method of washing shoes in a drum type washing machine includes: a washing step of washing the shoes by supplying washing water to a tub and rotating a drum connected with a motor; a rinsing step of rinsing the shoes after the completion of the washing step; and a spin-drying step of spin-drying the shoes by rotating the drum alternately in left and right directions after the completion of the rinsing step.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein in the washing step, the washing water is supplying a low level.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the washing step includes a soaking step of soaking dirt of the shoes for a predetermined time by heating the washing water to a predetermined temperature.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein in the washing step, the motor is rotated at 30 to 55 RPM.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the rinsing step includes a interim spin-drying step of spin-drying the shoes by rotating the drum alternately in the left and right directions.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein in the spin-drying step, the spin-dry is continued for 3 to 15 minutes.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein in the spin-drying step, the drum is rotated for a predetermined time in the left and right directions, respectively, with stop period between the rotations.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein in the spin-drying step, the motor is rotated at 40 to 45 RPM.
 9. The method of claim 1, wherein the spin-drying step includes a high speed spin-drying step of spin-drying the shoes by rotating the motor at a high RPM.
 10. The method of claim 1, further comprising a cleaning step of cleaning the tub after the completion of the spin-drying step.
 11. The method of claim 10, wherein the cleaning step is performed when selected within a predetermined time after the completion of the spin-drying step.
 12. The method of claim 1, further comprising a drying step of drying the shoes at a low temperature after the completion of the spin-drying step.
 13. The method of claim 12, wherein in the drying step, the heater is turned on at 30 to 40° C. and turned off at 45 to 55° C.
 14. The method of claim 12, wherein the drying step is continued for 30±5 minutes.
 15. The method of claim 12, wherein in the drying step, the drum is rotated for predetermined time in the left and right directions, respectively, with stop period between the rotations. 